Starting Fresh
by moonswirl
Summary: Gleekathon, day 849a: The more time goes by, the more Shelby knows maybe it's time she and Emmett take an important step.


_Started my daily ficlets to make the hiatus pass, then decided to keep going with a 2nd cycle, and then a 3rd, 4th, etc through 40th cycle. Now cycle 41!_

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><p><em><strong>INTRODUCING "CHEAT SHEET" - <strong>If you want to know ahead of time when a certain series will be updated next, just reassemble the link below and check out the list, save it, print it, bookmark it, whatever you need!  
>Go to: <span>gleekathon [dot] tumblr [dot] com [slash] cheatsheet<span>_

_** UPDATED WITH CYCLE 41 CHEAT SHEET ** Check it out to find out about **shift days**, starting in cycle 41!_

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><p><em><strong>This is a shift day [see above].<strong> There will be another upload this afternoon: Flying Solo, chapter 2._

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><p><strong>"Starting Fresh"<br>Shelby & Beth, Emmett & Joanie (OC), Shelby/Emmett  
>Shelby &amp; Beth series (following 'The Ties That Bind') <strong>

It was getting closer to a pressing matter, day by day. Neither of them had said a word so far, but they knew they had it on their minds: they wanted to live together… needed to. If it had been just them they could have done the 'my place or yours?' thing night to night for a while longer, but there were their daughters. Shelby had offered to get Joanie a bed at her house, but she insisted she would be fine with the couch. Usually they would alternate every few days, unless they changed their minds, but regardless, they hadn't slept apart in nearly two months.

The weekends were their favorite part, a window to what life could be, all of them together. They didn't have to go to work, or school, they could just be. It was almost like a vacation though, idyllic because it was 'weekend at Shelby's' or 'weekend at Emmett's.' That couldn't go on forever.

But then they were back to the same old question: which house, his or hers?

Emmett's house had seen him and Joanie rebuild their lives after the Nicole fiasco; this was where they had found joy again. The house looked like them, if there was such a thing. There were books everywhere, a touch of Joanie. And you couldn't look around a room without seeing Emmett's handiwork here and there… It was touches likes that which made this place so warm and happy.

And her house… It was a place where a family had been born, too. Though it had started out in her old apartment, the house had been where everything had really fallen into place. She'd walked those walls with her, during sleepless nights, she'd chased her when she got to crawling, and it would only be a matter of time before she took her first steps… It was special, too.

On Saturday morning, she'd woken up, after checking in or Beth, she'd crawled back into bed – they were at Emmett's today – snuggled up to him, easing his arm around her. Even in his sleep, he would hold fast and she felt safe. He would tease about her way of just lying there and watching him sleep. When he did wake up, his gag would be to check and make sure she hadn't drawn on his face.

This time, when he woke up, she was staring back at him, like she'd been waiting for him to wake. "We need to talk," she started, tracing her finger lazily about his chest.

"Should I worry?" he asked, yawning.

"I want to talk about our… living arrangement." He rubbed at his eyes, waking up some more.

"Okay?" he asked, and she sat up.

"We're practically living together… in two houses," she pointed out. "I know we've talked about living together eventually. I think we need to address this 'eventually.' Doesn't have to be now, but…"

"I'm ready when you are," he cut in, smiling.

"For talking?"

"For all of it," he nodded, making her smile.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"I've been sure," he revealed. "I've been waiting for a… right moment," he went on. "With everything that's been going on lately, with you, and Rachel, I didn't think it'd be the best time."

It had been a slow process, but there absolutely was progress, more than they'd ever managed before. They were taking things slowly, not working any sort of angle along the lines of 'we are mother and daughter, let's try and act that way.' But she'd come by, a couple of times now. One of those times had been in assisting Joanie to babysit Beth, when Shelby and Emmett had gone out for the night. And she and Sam brought Nell over for a play date a couple of times, allowing for conversation between Rachel and Shelby. She could still feel there was something that the girl wouldn't say, but she knew it was only a matter of time. They had done the rush-in before, and that just didn't work. They would keep going with this new way now.

"Okay, so that's settled," she breathed. "But we're still on the same problem, one house or the other…"

"Do you trust me?" he smiled, and she returned it.

"Always."

"What if we just eliminate the problem?" She frowned, confused. "We sell both houses, get a new house, together." She took a breath, considering. "It's a big leap, I understand if you need time to consider it, go over numbers…"

"I don't need numbers," she shook her head, breathing in. "I've got you, and I've got Joanie, and Beth's got you both, too. We're in a good place, ready to move on. Between both of us, we can make this work… we always have," she smiled.

"So… sell, sell, buy?" he nodded.

"Sell, sell, buy," she confirmed, then paused, listening.

"Beth?" he asked.

"No, I think I expected Joanie to burst in here," she told him and he laughed. "You know she would."

"Not this morning. She was up until one, texting with Alex."

"One?" Shelby blinked. Emmett picked up Joanie's phone, from his nightstand, confiscated from her.

"She'll be sleeping," he waved the phone.

"Well, we'll tell her later," she laughed. A moment later they heard the start of Beth's crying in the crib in the corner. Shelby looked over her shoulder, while Emmett craned his neck to see as well, as Beth stood up in her crib. "And that's my cue…" she smiled.

"I've got it," Emmett declared, getting up and padding over. Beth's eyes had locked on him and, when he was near, she presented her arms, caught up and carried back to the bed. "Morning, you," he smiled, sitting her in his lap, facing Shelby, who waved fingers at her. "Guess what, we're getting a brand new house," he told her, then, "Don't tell Joanie we told you first…"

THE END

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><p><strong>AN: This is a one-shot ficlet, which means that signing up for story alert will not bring you any alerts.  
><strong>**In the event of a sequel, the story will be separate from this one. And as chapter stories go, they are  
><strong>******always clearly indicated as such [ex: "Days 204-210" in the summary] Thank you!******


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